October 5, 2009

Asia Rising: Countries Funnel Billions Into Universities

Asia Rising: Countries Funnel Billions Into Universities 1

Giulio Sarchiola, Contrasto, Redux

Students work at terminals in a state-of-the-art library at Tsinghua U. in Beijing. China is plowing money into top universities while also establishing vocational programs and enabling more students to go to college.

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close Asia Rising: Countries Funnel Billions Into Universities 1

Giulio Sarchiola, Contrasto, Redux

Students work at terminals in a state-of-the-art library at Tsinghua U. in Beijing. China is plowing money into top universities while also establishing vocational programs and enabling more students to go to college.

By Mara Hvistendahl

Shanghai

Across East Asia, governments are funneling resources into elite universities, financing basic research, and expanding access to vocational and junior colleges, all with the goal of driving economic development.

Hong Kong and Singapore, compact port cities that have lost their traditional importance as logistics and manufacturing centers, are rushing to turn themselves into centers of innovation.

China has invested in a group of select universities that it hopes will become

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